Pretty Kewl indeed! It was designed as front wheel drive and had a Pontiac engine mounted mid-van!

Quote from Hemmings Motor News in 2013It was conceived as a dream vehicle for the 1955 Motorama series of GM shows held in Boston, New York, Miami, Los Angeles and San Francisco. The L'Universelle that made the show rounds was reportedly a roller only--the transaxle wasn't functional and the engine lacked a working ignition.The powerplant displayed in the L'Universelle was a 180hp Pontiac 288-cu in V-8 coupled to a transaxle. The cooling system was a complicated affair because the radiator had to be located behind the driver and angled skyward toward a roof vent where ceiling fans sucked in outside air.L'Universelle's steering setup was also complex as the column led to a gearbox that turned a vertical shaft leading to another gearbox that turned a horizontal shaft leading to the wheels.